Centrism
Centrism '''is a semi-theistic religion practiced all throughout the world, particularly by those descended from the subjects of the Anglean Empire. By far the world's most practiced religion, Centrism was founded by the revelation of Stefan of Andropia in 567, and within a century had become the official religion of the Anglean Empire and spread from Zenia to Eqota. Centrist dogma surrounds the battle between righteousness and temptation within the soul of man. The Centrist God is not considered anthropomorphic, but is instead formless, infinite and perfect, while humans are inherently bound by their own free will to be imperfect, and to be imperfect is what it means to live. Centrists are expected to constantly strive to be more righteous and reject the temptation of sinful desires, such as lust, gluttony and jealousy, and instead be kind, humble, and honest; however, they also are expected to understand that they will never achieve perfection until their death, when the righteous few will find their center and become one with God in perfect nothingness and the others will be forced to constantly relive imperfect lives on earth until they achieve righteousness. Churches and Sects There have been two major schisms in Centrism, which divide it into three major schools of theology: the Church of Andropia closely follows the teachings of Saint Stefan and emphasizes modesty, sparity, and the rejection of ambition; the Church of Anglea, which split from the Andropians around 700 in order to move the seat of religious power to the Emperor's control and better integrate it into the state by emphasizing Anglean traditions and allowing for emperor worship ("divine right of kings") and the construction of grand cathedrals; and the Cyraikin Church of Zenia, which largely follows the teachings of the Prophet Cyraikis. The Cyraikin Church is highly centralized, with a Patriarch in Harbelon and a strict hierarchy of leaders throughout the Southern Continent, where it predominates amongst the Centrist minority in Ukar, Geskia, Toran, and Ulamtyr, and remains prevalent in Tara and Sednyana. The Anglean Church, on the other hand, lost its patriarch after the end of the Anglean Patriarchate, and has broken into the Qotian Church, headed by the patriarch of Qotopolis, and a number of less centralized and formalized sects that predominate in Lasterus and Sednyana. The majority of Centrists beling to the Anglean Church (~71%), with around 35% of these belonging to the Qotian church, and the others generally to owing no specific allegiance but to the general doctrines of Anglean Centrism, except perhaps a broad church organization such as the Church of Lasterus. The Andropian school is highly structured and immensely fractured, with nearly fifty sects. Around 18% of Centrists belong to the Andropian school, of which the High Church of Andropia, headed by the Patriarch of Andropia, is the largest, but it includes a number of churche sthat retain ancient and bizarre traditions; among them are the Church of Saint Mazir, commonly known as the "Fire Church," which continues to practice full purification by fire, and the Durists, who shave their heads and wear no colors but gray, living in homes with no decorations. Teachings '''God Centrists reference "God" as a formless, shapeless entity, very different from explicitly theistic notions of God such as in Masctism, where he is seen as an anthropomorphic figure. Sin and Righteousness Centrists define "sin" as succumbing to one's base and animalistic desires, which involve the desire to do harm to others and also the desire to do harm to one's own immortal soul. Cruelty, murder, and hatred are considered sins, but so are acts such as casual sex, sodomy, masturbation, heavy drinking, smoking, fighting, and being overly ambitious. Good Centrists are expected to be humble and accept a life of moderation and perpetual kindness rather than give in to hedonism. Many more modern schools of Centrism have redefined the concept of "sin" to exclude so-called "crimes without victims" such as homosexuality and drinking, and many Centrists since the religion's very inception have ignored its teachings about ambition. Despite this, conservative (or "orthodox") Centrists often continue to avoid casual sex, masturbation, contraception, alcohol, drugs, and excessive material wealth. Afterlife Centrists do not believe in an afterlife per se; instead, they believe that the Righteous Few will be born into perfect nothingness and the rest of humanity will be reincarnated. James of Orphalos interpreted this as a small select group of people consistently passing into Heaven; on the other hand, Desians believe that all are forgiven upon their deaths, and other sects believe a wide variety of different interpretations, including that no one truly becomes perfectly nothing. The word "Heaven" is sometimes used for the Centrist afterlife, borrowing the term for the celestial afterlife of Anglean paganism, but this term is never used in Centrist scripture.